Eurotunnel has announced that it is committed to reduce the current level of freight train track access charges by up to 50%. This was welcomed by all in the logistics community with interests in rail cargo.
The Channel Tunnel Regulator (the Intergovernmental Commission) has required Eurotunnel to make its Channel Tunnel costs more transparent. This probably helped persuade Eurotunnel to announce that the charges will for the ‘off peak’ period, when most traffic operates, will reduce by 25% compared to 2013 levels, with no further increase until at least 2018.
The EU investigation was initiated following lobbying from organisations such as the Rail Freight Group (RFG) and the Freight Transport Association (FTA). To ‘assist’ the Commission with its inquiries, the FTA submitted a report showing that a 40% cut in rail freight tolls would lead to a more than doubling of freight trains through the tunnel.